Un-break My Heart
by BarbleeHeartie71
Summary: Elizabeth receives two surprises that heal her broken heart but does it come at a cost for someone she loves? I don't not own show or characters of When Calls The Heart


Elizabeth Thornton briskly walked out of town after having Carson confirm she was pregnant. She needed some time to think, away from the prying eyes of the residents of Hope Valley. She had a mixture of emotions running through her body. Mostly what she was feeling was joy and sadness. She was having Jack's baby and that made her happy, yet at the same time sad, since her beloved husband would not be able to see his child born. He had been killed during a Mountie training exercise that he had been asked to handle right after they were married. He had been away for almost two months when she received the worst news of her life. Now here she was with the best news of her life and she couldn't bring herself to really be totally happy. She needed privacy to sort through her feelings and the only place she could think of that would give her that was the land Jack had purchased to build their home.

As she walked passed the row houses and headed out of town, a man riding a horse into town spotted her. He felt his heart fill with joy at the sight of her but he also felt sadness and anger. Jack Thornton couldn't believe it when he found out he had been reported dead. When the land slide occurred, he had been knocked out by a rock and eventually landed in a river. Two boys had been fishing nearby and spotted him. One ran to get his father while the other pulled the stranger out of the river and covered him with his jacket. When the boys' father arrived, he recognized the red serge. His own father had been a Mountie. He immediately sprang into action and brought Jack to his home, where he nursed Jack back to health. Jack had been unconscious for several days, but when he woke up, he thanked the little family for caring for a perfect stranger when they didn't have to.

Once he was well enough to travel, Jack rode to Cape Fullerton and Mountie Headquarters. He would have rather returned to Hope Valley first but he decided to let the Mounties know he was better and would return to work, in a few weeks after going on his honeymoon with the love of his life. It was there he found out the most dreadful news. The Mounties had believed he was dead without so much of a proper search for him. They found his dog tags and just assumed he must have perished. Jack had never felt such anger in his life. It was worse than what he felt after his assignment in Cape Fullerton had been changed. He wanted to resign on the spot but he controlled his emotions and requested that he be given a leave of absence. He needed time to sort through his feelings, to be with his wife, and go on a proper honeymoon. Headquarters had agreed to his request, surprising him by giving him paid, indefinite leave. They knew they had made a huge mistake in not searching for him and they didn't want to lose one of their best men.

Jack urged his horse to move faster so he could keep an eye on Elizabeth to see where she was going. It looked like she was heading to their land. He hoped that's where he could find her. It would be the perfect place to reveal that he wasn't dead. They would be alone. He wasn't sure what her reaction would be to finding out he was alive. He imagined that she would be just as angry at the Mounties as he was.

A few minutes later, he reached the edge of their land. He saw Elizabeth place a blanket on the ground and slowly lower herself to sit on it. He thought he saw her wipe her eyes but he was still a distance from her. He decided then to get off his horse and slowly walk towards her. He felt he might startle her if he ran up on his horse. As he got closer he could hear her talking.

"Oh Jack! I am so confused right now and I miss you so much. I wish you were here. I received some news today that I should be happy about but I am finding it hard." She paused and reached for her handkerchief so she could blow her nose and wipe away some more tears. She put the hand down on her stomach and looked up at the sky. "Jack, I'm pregnant! I'm going to have your baby. I do feel some joy but mostly I feel sadness. You should be here for this, to see me pregnant and to help me raise our child together. I don't think I can do this alone. Why did this have to happen to us?" The tears were still on the descent down her cheeks. She lowered her head and continued to cry.

Jack stood there in shocked silence. Of all the things he expected her to say at this moment, this was not one of the. "Pregnant?" He said out loud, forgetting that he wanted to approach Elizabeth quietly as the world played over and over in his mind.

Elizabeth's head shot up as she turned towards the sound she had just heard. Her eyes widened, then closed as she shook her head, thinking she was imaging things. Her Jack was standing about four feet from her, his eyes shining with tears. "Jack?" She whispered. "Is that really you?" She stood up from the blanket and waivered on her feet as she felt dizzy.

Jack came out of his fog when he noticed her spell. "Elizabeth!" He rushed towards her and picked her up before she could fall to the ground. "Are you ok, Sweetheart?"

Elizabeth's tears began flowing faster. "Jack, Jack!" She cried out. "It really is you! You are alive!" She laid her head on his shoulder and put her arms tightly around him, not wanting to let go in case she was dreaming.

Jack carefully sat down on the blanket and held her just as tight as she was holding him. "Yes, Sweetheart! I'm alive. I'm so sorry you had to go through this, especially knowing you are pregnant." He kissed her temple. "I did hear you say that right? I'm not imagining it?"

Elizabeth lifted her head to look into his beautiful hazel eyes and his long eyelashes. "You are no more imaging the baby news than I am imaging you being alive." She moved her heads towards him and her lips met his.

Jack returned the kiss with an intense emotion he had never felt before. He had been given another chance at life, this time with his wife by his side and a baby on the way. It gave him something to think about in regards to returning to the Mounties. He wanted to be there for his family for the rest of his life. Was it worth continuing on in a career that could take him away from his family? He remembered conversations with Elizabeth about the dangers of his occupation. He had said he could make sure nothing would happen to him but look what happened during a training exercise? He almost lost his life during training. The Mounties had declared him dead without so much of a proper search and broke Elizabeth's heart. He couldn't do that to her again. He couldn't even begin to imagine what she went through; he just knew how he would feel if she had been the one to die so soon after their wedding. He wouldn't make it. Tears started to fall from his eyes.

Elizabeth felt Jack's tears fall on her head and his body start to shake. She pulled away from his embrace to look at his face. "Jack, what's wrong?"

Jack wiped the tears away from his eyes and took her hand in his. "I need to tell you something but I'm afraid it might upset you and I don't think that would be good for the baby."

"Jack, nothing could be worse for the baby than the grief I suffered when I didn't even know I was pregnant. The baby was fine then and now I have you to comfort me. I'll be fine."

"I'm not sure I could comfort you when I don't understand it myself". Elizabeth gave him a puzzled look. "All right. This has to do with me being reported dead by the Mounties." Elizabeth nodded and a single tear slid down her cheek as she remembered the pain she felt when she learned of his "death". Jack reached up and wiped it away, then told her everything that he know, how he felt about his choice of career at the moment and how he was doubting that he should even continue being a Mountie when it had brought him close to death too many times. "I just don't know what to do Elizabeth. I just know that I don't want to put you or our family through that anymore." He put head down in his hands and began to cry. He had never felt so conflicted in his life. Suddenly he felt his wife's arms wrap around him and the inner turmoil inside him lessened. He looked up at her and saw tears in her own eyes but also love and compassion. He knew in that instant what he had always known. She would stick by him no matter what. He gently took her back in his arms and kissed her.

They kissed for as long as they could before they needed to breath, then they just sat next to each other on the blanket, taking each other in and thinking about the second chance at life they were given. After a while, Jack felt Elizabeth start to tremble. "Are you cold, Sweetheart? We should go home. You shouldn't be out here where you could get sick." She nodded as he stood up and then helped her slowly get to her feet so she wouldn't get dizzy again. He folded the blanket and led her to his horse, where he helped her up. Once he was situated, he looked over his shoulder. "Hold on tight."

Elizabeth wrapped her arms around him. "I'll never let go." She rested her head against his back as he urged his horse forward.

"I'm going to take the back way around so hopefully we are not noticed. I want to spend some time alone with you. If we go through the main way into town everyone is going to stop us wanting to find out what happened to me."

"You're right." Elizabeth replied. "Let's see if we can sneak into the house through the back door. Less chance of people seeing us if we enter the house through the back. Although, I expect Abigail may stop by to check on me. I'll tell you everything later but she was the one who figured out I might be pregnant and it just happened today."

"I can definitely see that happening then. She will keep our secret if she does stop by." He had some questions running through his mind about why she said she just found out she was pregnant that day but she did say she would tell him later. He would have to be satisfied with that. She wasn't keeping anything a secret; just putting it off until they could be alone, comfy and cozy in their home. "Wait, do you have some food in the house for dinner?"

Elizabeth let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm afraid I don't. I haven't been that hungry and when I have been eating, it's just been soup or biscuits. If Abigail doesn't stop by, I'll go over to the café and get something for us. That way we can keep you a secret a little longer."

"Well, if it means we get some food in the house, I am willing to make my presence know. I want you to rest. You have been though a lot during these early months of pregnancy. I want to take care of you, spoil you a bit."

"That's sweet Jack." She wanted to kiss his lips but since she could not reach that far, she pressed her lips to his back. "Let's wait to see if Abigail stops by first, then decide."

"Sounds like a plan."

Jack made sure that his horse trotted slowly towards home. He didn't know if riding fast could cause Elizabeth to have morning sickness but he could tell she had dozed off so he couldn't ask her. He wasn't taking any chances and he didn't care if it took them longer to get home because of it. She had been though too much recently all while being pregnant and deserved to be pampered by him. He couldn't wait to get home with her.

Meanwhile over at the row houses, Rosemary was getting anxious and was driving Lee crazy. "For heaven's sake Rosemary! Please set down and tell me what's bothering you. You are driving me batty with the way you are pacing back and forth between the front and back windows."

Rosemary gave her husband one of her looks before sitting down. "It's Elizabeth. I saw her outside the café today and it looked like she wasn't feeling well. Then Abigail came out and they talked for a bit, followed by Elizabeth rushing off to the clinic. I hid across the street to wait for her…"

"Rosemary, haven't we talked about this? You should be giving people space and letting them talk to you when they have something to say." Lee reprimanded.

"Oh, Lee." She let out an exasperated breath before continuing. "When she came out she had the oddest expression on her face. She looked happy but she also looked like she would burst out in sad tears all over again. I couldn't figure out why she looked like that. Then she took off out of town and I lost track of her. I have been waiting for her to come home because I need to make sure she is alright."

"No, you want to know she is alright and you want to know why she was at the clinic. I'm sure she is just fine but she will tell you when she is ready. Now you stay here and work on a dress design or something. That will take your mind of Elizabeth."

"But Lee, aren't you concerned about her? She's your best friend's wife! Your dead best friend. Didn't you promise Jack you would look out for her?"

"Yes I'm concerned but as I just said to you, we will find out what is going on when she is ready to tell us. I don't think I need to remind you what a tough time she has been going through. Maybe she just needs to be alone right now. She knows she has plenty of friends here in Hope Valley and when she is ready to talk she will seek us out, don't you think?" He sent her a look of his own, one that meant he would not be putting up with her silliness tonight.

"I suppose." She grabbed her sketch pad and started working on a design while Lee went back to reviewing paperwork for the mill. A few minutes later, they looked up when they heard a horse gallop in from the back. "What in the world?" Rosie stood up and ran to the back of the house with Lee at her heels. She opened the door and saw a Mountie helping Elizabeth off a horse. "Elizabeth, is everything alright? I've been worried about you." _Why is a Mountie helping you off that horse? _She thought to herself.

Once Elizabeth was firmly on the ground she and the Mountie turned towards Rosemary. "Hi, Rosemary. I'm sorry I worried you. We were out on our land talking, catching up and lost track of time." She moved towards her friend with her hand firmly placed in Jack's. She knew Rosie was going to have the shock of her life.

"We? Who's we?" Rosie inquired before she got a good look at the Mountie. "Jack?" She stuttered. "Eliza….Lee…" She could hardly speak, something that was very unlike her.

"Hi Rosie and Lee." Jack looked over at his best friend and winked, something that was a sign to the lumber mill owner that the man in front of him was indeed Jack Thornton. "I am very much alive. I'm so sorry you all had to go through what you did. Especially Elizabeth, but I'm grateful you were here for her at her time of need and would have taken care of her."

Rosie sank into a chair and cried, happy tears that her old friend was alive and well. She couldn't speak yet. Elizabeth kneeled down beside her and they hugged and cried together. Lee came over to Jack and they shook hands. "I won't ask what happened because I can tell that whatever did happen you are still upset about it and need time to deal with it. I'm just glad you are alive."

"Thank you, Lee." They embraced briefly. "Do you think you could do me a favor?"

"Sure Jack. What is it?"

"Well, we came in the back way because we didn't want to be seen by the rest of the town but we aren't mad that you heard us. It was inevitable you and Rosie would hear us since you live next door."

"That's true"

"Elizabeth said she hasn't been eating much since my "death" and doesn't think she has much food in the house."

"Say no more, Jack. I'll be happy to run into town and get you some food. Do you want something just from the café or supplies from the store as well?"

"Maybe just the café for now. Elizabeth thinks Abigail might be stopping by later to check on her. If you could go, pull her aside and fill her in, I know she will pack enough for at least through tomorrow morning and she won't say anything to anyone else in town. Tonight I just want to be with my wife and maybe make some plans for that honeymoon we never took. Someplace closer to home."

"Makes sense, I suppose. Baseball season is over so you wouldn't be able to catch a game in Chicago but you could still go and see other things."

"Lee, may I ask you to keep a secret for me? Even from Rosie?"

"Of course!"

"Come with me!" Jack moved a little further away in the yard from where the women were. "Elizabeth is pregnant!"

Lee grinned at his friend. "Congratulations, Jack. You will make a wonderful father."

"Thank you. Elizabeth just found out today too. I think she had morning sickness for a while now but did not realize what it was because of my "death". We are going to talk about it tonight. I'm concerned about taking her on a long trip if it will cause her to be more nauseous. She has already been through so much."

"I can understand that. I have an idea for a trip although it's not that far away."

"What is it? As long as we can be alone together I don't mind if we aren't that far away.

"I don't know if you remember but Bill found a rundown little cabin about an hour or so out of town."

"I do remember him saying something about it."

"He came to me with some ideas about fixing it up, possibly to use it when he needed it for Mountie business that might keep him away overnight but we also discussed it for use if we had visitors that didn't want to stay in the saloon, say like Mr. and Mrs. Thatcher."

"Right. I can't see them staying in the saloon."

"Bill wanted to add on to it so there could be more rooms and fix up the rest of the place. It has indoor plumbing with a bathtub, a kitchen, and three bedrooms. It's very quiet and almost no one goes by there. Rosie and I stayed there for a few days for an anniversary."

"That sounds perfect. I will mention it to Elizabeth tonight. Thank you."

Just then they heard Rosie shout out and jump up from her chair. "I have to go into town and tell everyone that Jack is alive. They will be so happy for you both!"

Elizabeth stood up to stop her but had another dizzy spell and immediately fell to the ground. Jack raced over to help her up, sending Rosie a glare.

"Stop right there Rosemary Coulter!" Lee sternly ordered.

Rosie did as she was told having never heard that tone of voice before. "But why Lee? Don't you think the other in town should know?"

Lee stood in front of her and looked into her eyes. "Yes I do but in due time. Elizabeth and Jack deserve some time alone together. They didn't have a proper honeymoon before Jack had to go on that assignment and you know what happened next. If we tell everyone in town now, they won't get any peace and quiet. They won't get the time alone they deserve."

"But Lee…"

"Rosemary don't you agree that our friends deserve to have some private time together?"

Rosemary knew Lee was right even though she hated to admit it. "Yes, I agree." She said with a frown, nonetheless.

"Rosemary, I have an errand to run for Jack. There isn't much food in their house so I am going to run to the café and get them something. He asked me to pull Abigail aside and tell her. If you come with me and promise not to breathe a word about Jack to anyone on our walk to the café, I will let you tell Abigail."

The smile returned to Rosie's face and she started jumping up and down a little. "Really Lee?"

"Yes, Rosie, but you have to keep your mouth shut. Not a word about Jack or the deal is off."

"I won't say a word, I promise!" She threw her arms around her husband and hugged him.

Lee looked over at Jack and the two men grinned. Jack knew how much this meant to Rosie having grown up with her.

"We are going to head to the café now, Jack. See you in a bit."

"Thank you, Lee. We really appreciate this. Both of you."

"Anything for the two of you." Rosemary called back as they headed into their home.

Jack turned back to his beautiful wife. "What do you say we go inside ourselves?" He held out his hand towards her.

"That sounds wonderful. I'm feeling a little tired. Everything is catching up to me." She squealed a little she felt Jack pick her up. "Jack, what are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" He grinned. "I'm carrying you into our house. You've been through a lot lately."

"So have you. I'm afraid I can't pick you up and carry you over the threshold."

"That's true but I think I have an idea about how to solve this." He told her as he put her down on the sofa. He had a big grin on his face as he sat down next to her and pulled her into his arms.

"I'm intrigued. What's your plan, Husband?" She asked, loving that she could use that word again. Husband! She had her husband back! Her broken heart was healed!

"All I thought about on my way home to you was the honeymoon we didn't get to take. I wanted to take it now but when I found out that you are pregnant, I was concerned how traveling a long way in a stagecoach and train might affect you. That you might get morning sickness."

"Thank you, Jack for thinking about that. I don't know a lot of men who would be concerned about their wives in that way."

"Not this man. I want to be involved with the pregnancy, from morning sickness to delivery. That is if you want me to." He amended as he saw tears shimmering in her eyes.

"Oh Jack. Of course I want you by side throughout the pregnancy. Especially now when we have been given a second change at our life together. I'm only crying because you made me so happy, wanting to be with me. You might want to get used to the tears though. Pregnant women get pretty emotionally."

Jack hugged her again. "I'll make note of that." He replied. "Now back to my idea. Was I correct in thinking going on a long trip might be hard for you?"

"Yes. After we had your "funeral" I went to Hamilton for a while. I'm not sure why I thought it was a good idea because all my father did was try to convince me to move back to Hamilton. I refused each time he tried because even with you gone, Hope Valley is still my home, more than Hamilton ever was or will be. I returned after three weeks and the whole trip back I was sick. I kept thinking it was because I was depressed over your "death" but now I realize it was morning sickness."

"Certainly sounds like it to me. I hope you don't mind but I told Lee about the baby because I was talking to him about going on a trip with you. I asked him not to tell Rosie."

"That's good and I know Lee will keep it a secret for now."

"Lee had an idea for us. A place we could go to without too much traveling but still have the privacy we are looking."

"The house Bill fixed up!" Elizabeth exclaimed happily, her eyes glowing with excitement.

"Yes! Have you seen it?"

"I have. I helped him decorate it."

"Then I know I will love it. So, what do you say? Would you like to finally go on our honeymoon and spend some much deserved time alone with your husband?"

"I would love to." She jumped onto his lap and began kissing him all over his face. He leaned back and enjoyed the kissing treating he was receiving. His mind quickly turned to thoughts of their upcoming time away together, just the two of them. Or should he say the three of them.


End file.
